In an oil recovery system, such as steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD), metal components are often exposed to substances that include hydrocarbons and thus cause fouling of the components. As a specific example, in an SAGD process, hot steam is introduced into the ground via a top injection well. The top well descends down to a deep level below the surface (e.g., into oil sands) and then extends horizontally to provide steam to heat oil containing material to a temperature at which it can flow (e.g., down via gravity) to a bottom production well. The oil and steam/water mixture is then pumped from bottom well to the surface where the oil containing mixture may be processed for oil recovery and recycling of the process water.
In processing the oil containing mixture, water is separated from the oil and recycled. The water is recycled partially to minimize environmental impact and partially to conserve resources. The separation process involves the use of metallic heat exchangers to cool the oil containing mixture and separate oil from other process materials. A portion of the water separated from the oil is then recycled (recycled process water).
Components that encounter process water become fouled with a hydrocarbon film that forms on the surface of the components. A common example of such fouling is fouling of a heat exchanger in an SAGD process that is contacted by an oil containing mixture (e.g., SAGD process water) derived from a production well. Conventional practice includes taking the system offline, cleaning the heat exchangers, and thereafter placing the system online. This is time consuming, labor intensive, and expensive.